


This One Time ... Tomorrow

by Whommel



Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Music, Alternate Universe - Student/Teacher, Alternate Universe - Summer Camp, But only if you squint, Falling In Love, M/M, Musician!Phil, Pining, Teacher!Phil, musician!Dan, pastel!dan, teen!Dan
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-16
Updated: 2017-07-03
Packaged: 2018-11-14 23:38:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 3,624
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11218620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whommel/pseuds/Whommel
Summary: Phil Lester - a music student - gets a summer job teaching at a music summer camp. But what happens when he meets a beautiful boy in his class?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic on AO3. Thank you for clicking on it! <3
> 
> I have all chapters, except chapter 6, fully written, so it should be updated regularly until complete.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Dan and Phil, they are only in this AU as characters.  
> Not beta'ed and English is not my first language so I apologize for any mistakes.

Phil Lester was ready and fidgeting. He’d moved the same trumpet five times now. Everything was ready. The sheet music had been printed and placed in neat piles, closets holding the instruments had been unlocked and all the instruments moved out ready to be used. Everything was shining, freshly cleaned and polished. Coming here so early had been a bad idea.

It was his first time teaching and he was nervous.

He knew his way around all kinds of instruments, but teaching a bunch of teenager about them ... now that was something else entirely. He wasn’t a teacher, just a student at Royal Northern College of Music looking to make some money during the summer holiday. One of his teachers had recommended him, praising him for being inventive and thinking out of the box. And he wouldn’t be much older than the teenagers he would be teaching and judging by the hopeful look on the faces of the much older teachers at his interview, that was a quality they were desperate for.

At the Beautiful Noise Summer Camp there were several music teachers, all very experienced at their own instruments and all a bit boring looking if Phil was completely honest. Apparently there where many different shades of beige and he’d seen quite a few of them worn by his new colleagues.

Phil himself was anything but boring. He wore bright t-shirts, mismatched socks and he had an energetic spring in his step. At least after the days first cup of coffee.

He was supposed to be the breath of fresh air at camp. The teens that were about to arrive all played their own selected instrument and had years of practice. Where the other teachers would help the students become better at their chosen instrument, Phil was supposed to shake things up, take them out of their comfort zone and challenge them. His goal this summer was to introduce all kinds of instruments to the teens to broaden their knowledge and make them unafraid to experiment. He hoped to make them good at working together and to give them a new understanding of the other parts of an orchestra or band.

At his interview he had shown that he could play all kinds of instruments, both his preferred instrument the violin as well as percussion instruments, brass and the piano. Not as well as the more experienced teachers but well enough for this. Good thing they hadn’t asked him to sing though.

He loved experimenting and sometimes made YouTube videos where he put several takes of himself playing the various instruments together so he played a song with a band consisting of just himself. He’d gotten quite a few followers doing that. In his most watched video he had played a version of Somewhere Over The Rainbow while 6 different versions of him wore shirts in the colours of the pride flag. It was a subtle coming out that he hadn’t elaborated further.

Now he was elated to get the opportunity to be teaching these young people. Soon the camp would be overrun by the best and brightest of the country’s young musicians. It would be a challenge and he hoped that he could rise to it.

He kept looking out of the window. A few cars had begun to arrive and he could see a bus approaching. He started wringing his hands and found that his palms were sweaty. He rubbed them on the front of his pants and took a deep, shaky breath. He stepped outside, locked the door behind him with slightly shaking hands and got ready to greet the first to arrive.


	2. Chapter 2

Yesterday had been a busy day. Phil had helped people find their lodgings, had answered questions as well as he could, had helped carry heavy instruments or suit cases. Everything was a blur of activity. He found that he had connected well with the teens although he had drawn a few funny looks at his more bizarre jokes. He had a tendency to make far to many animal noises and jokes when he was nervous. He really should work on that he reminded himself sternly as the first people began arriving for his first class.

Everyone was greeted with a handshake and a bright smile and he found that luckily everyone seemed to be in a really great mood. One of the last people to arrive looked more like a deer caught in headlights though and Phil wondered why that was. He greeted the boy with a slight frown but quickly caught himself and sent him an even brighter smile to make up for it. The boy blushed a bright pink and looked shyly at him through his eyelashes before hurrying to take a seat.

He began the class with a short introduction of himself and then made the teenagers introduce themselves. The blushing boys name was Dan and he played the piano and Phil took special notice of that, intrigued by the boys behaviour earlier.

Phil then made everyone choose an instrument they found interesting, but had never or rarely played. He asked them to experiment with the instrument as if they had never seen it before. The noises that followed were horrific but everyone had fun, enjoying that they could experiment with music and lack of rules. He then made 3 groups of 4 people whose instruments complimented each other and told them that now they were a band. They had an hour and a half to create a simple tune and play it together. It didn’t have to be beautiful he assured them, that wasn’t what the exercise was about.

The groups were assigned places where they could work without interruption and began working. He silently checked in on the groups and was happy to see that the young people were good at helping each other. That was what he had hoped for. Since he had no training as a teacher he had been very nervous if his ideas would actually work.

Relieved he sat down at his desk and as subtly as possible he began watching Dan while pretending to read. The boy interested him. He had noticed that at first Dan had been very shy and withdrawn, but one of the other boys had chosen a keyboard and Phil put Dan in his group on purpose. There was a small smirk on Phil’s face as he watched how Dan’s body language changed as he excitedly taught the other boy about his favourite instrument.

Worries assuaged, Phil got up and walked another round to help where needed.

At the end of the hour and a half Phil noticed that Dan was smiling and joking with the others and he was weirdly happy about that.

The music the 3 bands played was certainly more interesting than good, but Phil found the experiment to be a success, because all the young people had fun. And since no one knew the instrument they were playing they had been equals in a way, all out of their comfort zone, the egos that so easily got in the way were forgotten for a little while.

Phil had two other classes that day and was happy when everything went well but he found that he had enjoyed the first class the most. He figured it was because it was his first one ever.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thank you to everyone who has read, given kudos and/or commented. <3

The next few days he ran into Dan a few times and each time he greeted the teen with a big smile and a wave. Phil noticed how the boy blushed a pretty pink every time. He also noticed how Dan would quickly look in another direction when he looked at him across a room. It was a little peculiar and made Phil wonder. He tried not to notice that he couldn’t really sneak a peak at the boy because Dan’s behaviour indicated that he would be caught every time.

***

The next weeks when Dan was in his class Phil noticed how the young man opened up more and more and began building friendships. He had - discreetly - learned that Dan was the only one from his area here, so the boy hadn’t known anyone already, making it even more difficult for the shy, introverted boy to socialize. The fun musical activities Phil came up with were perfect for breaking the ice and Dan thrived. Phil found - purely professional - pleasure in that fact. And if some of the ideas were inspired by Dan and perhaps designed to give Dan the best experience at camp then Phil wasn’t going to willingly admit that.

And that time the activity was to play outside in nature and the brightly shining sun, it was purely to find inspiration in the beauty outside. Not at all so Phil could wear sunglasses and have the freedom to really look at Dan without being caught. And Phil definitely didn’t feel a pang of guilt at this. 

He tried not to dwell to much on how soft Dan looked in his pastel pink t-shirt and the way it hugged his body tightly. How skinny jeans did just as good a job at showing of long legs. How his cheeks dimpled when he smiled that wide, adorable smile. How - adding to the cute birthmarks already on his face - the boy got more and more freckles as the sun kissed him. The way his hair curled, inviting fingers to play with it ...

***

The last week of camp began and Dan was in Mondays first class. Phil was happy to see that the teenager was in a great mood. He was joking and laughing with his friends, radiating a joy that hadn’t been there at the beginning of his very first class. Phil had great trouble looking anywhere else as it was such a lovely sight. As Dan stood up playing the keyboard he kept swinging his hips, constantly in motion. As he walked around the room Phil found that his eyes kept being drawn to that hypnotic movement.

And then he got caught. In a moment of weakness he’d let his eyes rest on Dan’s hips and ass just that bit to long. Okay, far to long. And then he’d let his gaze travel up Dan’s body, over the tanned arms and round shoulders, over that lovely neck with the soft looking skin, up to the pierced ears and the slightly curled hair and ...

Dan was looking right at him. And the blush was back. But he also had the sweetest smile on his face and biting his lower lip he sent a look Phil’s way that made Phil’s heart skip a beat and do this flippy-over thing that he’d never felt before.

Phil could feel his own cheeks warm up and he hurried over to his desk, grabbed the nearest sheet music there and began arranging them so he would look busy. It had been in perfect order.

He didn’t look directly at Dan until the class was over.

***

When the class was dismissed everyone rushed outside since it was time for lunch. Except Dan.

Now Phil had no choice but to look at him as he approached Phil’s desk. Dan looked a little hesitant and the blush was back. Or maybe it was a permanent feature, Phil couldn’t remember having seen Dan without the lovely pink shade.

For long moments they just looked at each other until the silence stretched and became awkward.

Finally Dan blurted “I like your videos.”

Phil blinked. Twice. Then a wide smile spread on his face. “You’ve seen my videos? Which ones?”

The pink on Dan’s face turned a shade darker and he looked down before admitting. “All of them, actually. “ He looked up and with wide earnest eyes locked with Phil’s he almost sighed “They’re amazing.”

Phil didn’t know what to say, his brain was to busy putting the puzzle that was Dan together. A slight chill crept down his spine. Everything made sense now. Dan was star struck. Although Phil was far from being a star. That explained everything. Phil couldn’t help being a bit disappointed. He tried to avoid recognizing what the hope that had been squashed was, but something deep inside him hurt.

Dan had a strange look on his face, it had been too long since Phil should have responded.

Phil had great difficulty answering and settled on saying “It’s always nice to meet a fan”. It sounded so lame that he mentally cringed. Pulling himself together he managed to add “The next activity starts soon, you should go get your lunch” and hastily added “I’d love to talk more about the videos when we have more time” to not seem too dismissive. The smile on his face was big but didn’t quite reach his eyes.

He was out of the classroom so fast he forgot to lock behind him. It was embarrassing to have to sneak back to lock the door after a short time hiding and waiting, but luckily Dan had left when he did.


	4. Chapter 4

The next class with Dan was an afternoon class and Phil forced himself to appear natural although he didn’t have his usual energy and felt kind of sad when he looked at the beautiful boy. When class was over Phil turned his back to the door and made to gather his things quickly. He both hoped and dreaded that Dan would stay after class again.

And then Dan was right in front of him, expression eager and open. “Do you have time today? To talk about your videos, I mean”.

So Dan hadn’t been scared away by his strange behaviour at least.

Phil couldn’t stop the fond smile that spread on his face. Looking at the hopeful expression on the eager boys face he realized that he couldn’t say no to Dan. If Dan wanted to know about his videos, then he would tell him every single detail.

***

They went outside and this time Phil remembered to lock. He motioned Dan to follow him and they went to the kitchen where the friendly staff gave Phil a bag with a couple of sandwiches, two bananas and two bottles of water.

Phil hoped it didn’t look to strange that he was planning an impromptu picnic with a student.

He didn’t dare go anywhere where they would be completely alone, fearing what people would think if they didn’t do this out in the open. It could be misunderstood ... for something Phil wanted, but that was besides the point since he didn’t intend to act on it. 

He chose a spot under a large tree and sat down, wishing he had a picnic blanket. He took of the thin galaxy themed jacket he was wearing and placed it next to himself for Dan to sit on as the boy was only wearing a t-shirt. Thankfully the weather was warm.

He busied himself taking the food out of the bag and then arranging it on top of the bag turned table cloth. His hands shook slightly. He didn’t want Dan to notice so he began asking him questions about what he wanted to know about the videos and quickly they were both engrossed in conversation about their mutual interest. 

Somehow the conversation shifted to what had inspired Phil to make the videos and from there they discovered their mutual love of the same bands, the same shows, the same movies, the same books. Dan would mention something and Phil would be astonished that he loved the same thing. Then Phil would mention something else - more or less related - and it would be Dan’s turn to be surprised and so it went until Dan suddenly shivered and Phil noticed that he was freezing and it was almost dark outside.

They looked at each other, both knowing that they had to wrap this up and neither appearing to want to do so.

Dan had that open expression on his face again. For a moment Phil found that he looked like he was inviting Phil to kiss him. They were under a spell where anything could happen...

***

Phil was the first to break that spell as he took a deep breath and blinked. He turned his head and busied himself cleaning up after them. If he hadn’t he was afraid that he would do something stupid. And possibly illegal.

Dan was over the age of consent. Phil had checked and yes he was ashamed of it. But Phil was the boy’s teacher. He was technically in a position of power over him and he wasn’t willing to use that for his own gain.

They walked back and as he glanced over at Dan he imagined that he could see disappointment on the boy’s face and he gave him a small apologetic smile without daring to otherwise address what had been between them.

When he said goodnight he dared to place one hand on Dan’s right shoulder while the other gave the boy’s left hand a quick squeeze. Then he quickly turned around and left while he still could.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is so short, but it's my favourite chapter and I didn't want to add any more to it. :)

The last day comes far to soon.

They haven’t done anything besides talk, but other people can misunderstand especially with the way they look at each other. So they’ve erred on the side of caution and only spent what time they could together without beginning to draw strange looks. It has been far, far to little time.

Phil has had far to much time to think about things though and his mind is spinning and his heart is aching.

It’s the last day, the last hour, minutes even and Phil is in love and soon Dan will be gone and Phil feels nauseous and terrified and desperate but he doesn’t do anything. He just watches as the beautiful boy he loves says goodbye to his friends. The lump in his throat is painful and the corners of his eyes sting. 

Then Dan turns to look at him.

Phil is certain that Dan must be able to see everything he’s feeling. His heart is beating so hard that he won’t be surprised if it’s visible through his t-shirt.

Then the boy walks over to him, a shy smile on his face and he’s looking at Phil through his eyelashes again and the lump doubles in size and everything hurts.

Then Dan’s arms are wrapped around him. And he can feel Dan’s warm breath next to his ear.

“Tomorrow.” Dan whispers to him.

Phil’s mind is spinning, not understanding.

“Tomorrow ... you’re not my teacher any more.”

Something - paper - is pressed into Phil’s hand and before he can react the boy is gone.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who's read, commented and/or given kudos. I adore each and every one of you.  
> Final chapter. :)

Phil holds onto the note in his hand with all his might until he can get away and look at it in private. 

As he unfolds it he sees a number. Dan’s number. He immediately takes out his phone and carefully transfer the digits from the paper onto a new contact. He almost drops his phone, that’s how much he’s shaking, but this can’t go wrong, he won’t allow it.

The note is folded carefully and lovingly placed in his wallet. He treats it like the greatest treasure he possesses and that isn’t far from the truth.

His fingers itch to press the buttons on his phone that contact Dan but he resists sending Dan a message or calling him. It’s too soon. Tomorrow.

He’s not completely present, mind full of possibilities, of dreams of the future as he put instruments away in his classroom and packs his suitcase so he can leave tomorrow. Tomorrow.

“Tomorrow ... you’re not my teacher any more.”

Although everything they did was completely innocent, Dan must have been able to read him, sense what Phil wanted but wouldn’t allow, not with a teachers responsibility on his shoulders. But tomorrow they’re just two boys. There’s a few years between them, 4 and a half to be exact, but they’re still just two boys. And if Phil has any luck, then they’re two boys in love. He doesn’t quite dare hope.

“Tomorrow...”

That word repeats itself in his head again and again as he unsuccessfully tries to sleep. There’s no chance, not when tomorrow is so close to becoming today.

At 00:01 he sends the first message. He keeps it short.   
‘It’s tomorrow now.’

He immediately burrows his head in his pillow as he second guesses the message. Is it to hopeful? Not hopeful enough? Should he have come on strong so Dan would have no doubt that Phil was interested? Should he keep some distance? Should he just have said hi and let Dan set the tone? ...

At 00:02 his phone beeps.

Phil draws in a shaky breath and looks.

Dan’s message is both cheesy and filled with insecurity but Phil finds it strangely perfect.   
‘is today the first day of the rest of our lives?’

Phil almost writes ‘yes’, but he hesitates. 

He ponders his options for a few seconds and instead of writing him, he decides to call Dan. He needs to at least hear his voice for this. The phone is picked up immediately.

“Yes!” 

Oops, he let himself get carried away there, he hadn’t meant to shout, it just happened.

The relieved laughter on the other end of the line is completely worth his embarrassment though.   
They quickly arrange to talk over Skype instead, the need to see each other is so strong. 

The next hours are spent talking, dreaming, planning and sometimes just looking at each other with fond, goofy smiles on their faces. They fall asleep with their laptops open next to them, closely connected even with the physical distance between them.

It’ll take a while before they share a bed that belongs to both of them, but when they do, they never let go.


End file.
